Michael Hussey and Brad Haddin's record-breaking day at the Gabba was the perfect response for an Australian team with a lot of critics, and the long-time teammates say that doing it together made the moment all the sweeter.
Both men entered the game under scrutiny. Hussey's form – or perceived lack thereof – was a recurring issue in the Ashes build-up and Haddin hadn't played a Test since March, with understudy Tim Paine performing exceptionally.
Breaking a mark held by Don Bradman and Lindsay Hasset since 1946 will be something to savour in days to come, but Hussey says there were no thoughts of history, only a focus on toughing it out together.
"It was about just trying to keep each other in the moment, and keep playing ball by ball," Hussey said.
"We had a bit of a laugh along the way, and we talked about our battles and struggles and any negative thoughts, and we just tried to focus on playing the next ball as well as we could. I thoroughly enjoyed the partnership."
"That first hour, was the toughest and the highest quality Test bowling that you're going to get anywhere. It was a real battle."
"We couldn't get too far ahead of ourselves, we just had to keep it as simple as we could."
"We've been in some fantastic positions in the last year or so (and haven't gone on to win), and it's a challenge for our team. We've got to try to finish the job," he said.
"It's Test cricket, it's not easy, we're going to have to work hard for it, we know that, but it's going to be very special if we can."
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